FBI probing missing Palm Beach County lawyer

Timothy McCabe, 55, last seen April 2; money missing from law firm's accounts

Timothy McCabe (www.timmccabelaw.com )

April 15, 2013|By Brett Clarkson, Sun Sentinel

The FBI joined the investigation into the reported disappearance of Palm Beach County real-estate lawyer Timothy P. McCabe and the apparent loss of millions of dollars in clients' money. Friends and associates are now asking questions about his financial dealings — including at least one man who said he lent McCabe $200,000.

"I loaned it to him personally," said Howard Ginsberg, 82, of West Boynton, who reported the situation to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office for an investigation. He declined to discuss the specifics of the loan or why it was made.

According to a Sheriff's Office incident report, Ginsberg called McCabe's law firm at 10 a.m. on April 5 and was told that McCabe, 55, of Boca Raton, was "nowhere to be found," along with the money in an account used to make monthly payments to Ginsberg.

Steve Samiljan, a partner in the Lake Worth-based McCabe and Samiljan LLC, said Monday he has learned that McCabe was the recipient of several loans.

"I have spoken to several clients who said they have lent money [to McCabe]," said Samiljan, who added he spoke "for quite a while" with FBI agents on Monday.

Samiljan, who said he has his own questions about the situation, said Friday it appeared at least $6 million was missing from the firm's trust accounts.

According to a Boca Raton police missing person report, McCabe's wife, Donna McCabe, 49, filed a missing-person report at about 11 a.m. on April 5 after last seeing her husband on April 2. She said McCabe called a friend and said something that concerned her, police spokesman Mark Economou said Friday. "This is the last time we talk," McCabe allegedly said in the call, according to a Sheriff's Office incident report.

Boca Raton police pinged McCabe's cell phone and saw that it was hitting a tower in South Carolina, Economou said. Samiljan said McCabe has property in North Carolina.

Special Agent Michael Leverock, spokesman for the FBI's Miami office, said the Sheriff's Office asked federal agents to help with the investigation.

"At this time, McCabe is considered a missing person," Leverock said in an email. "The FBI is assisting PBSO in looking into the circumstances surrounding his disappearance."

While some friends and associates described McCabe as an "honorable" lawyer and devoted family man on Monday, others said they don't know what to think.

"His [three] daughters and his wife are his life," said Shane Santacroce, a friend and former colleague. "There's nothing more important to him, and that's why this whole thing doesn't make sense to me."

Erik Martinez, 41, owner of the Deerfield Beach-based La Playa Title Company, said he dealt with McCabe for about 10 months but stopped the relationship because McCabe fell short of Martinez's professional expectations.